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Home2020 (Page 67)
Agrotech, Environment

To invest $2 billion in sustainable agriculture by 2025

A global survey conducted by the Syngenta Group has found that 72 percent of large scale farmers in the USA, France, China, Brazil, India and across Africa are concerned about the impact climate change will have on crop yields, animal health and their ability to serve the markets in the next five years.

Though a survey of European farmers has found 46 percent believing that businesses have been significantly affected by Covid-19, 53 percent said higher priority should be for climate change and 63 percent agreed climate change would have a larger impact on their business than Covid-19 over the next five years. The Syngenta Group, on 29 June, 2020, launched its new Good Growth Plan to help agriculture’s recovery from the economic and social effects of the Covid-19 restrictions.

Erik Fyrwald, Chief Executive Officer, Syngenta Group said, “Like a pandemic, climate change is an inevitable threat that we must address before it is too late. As the economy and agriculture begin to build back with the gradual easing of the Covid-19 restrictions, we need to support a recovery for farmers that puts the fight against climate change and biodiversity loss at its core. The post-COVID agriculture needs accelerated innovation to recover better and fight climate change. Since its launch, the Good Growth Plan’s principles and priorities have become deeply embedded in the way we do business at Syngenta. The plan was, of course, just the start.”

 

 

 

 

 

To invest $2 billion in sustainable agriculture

Agro Universities, IT, R&D, Water

The app offers water users an irrigation and fertilizing calendar in real time

The Hydraulics and Irrigation research team at the University of Cordoba has just launched a mobile app called Reutivar App that lets farmers control and measure the ideal amount of water and fertilizers to be used in these kinds of irrigation systems. The purpose of this tool is to equip fertigation with scientific criteria and aims, a practice that is becoming more and more common but that, at times, can result in excessive use of fertilizers, such as nitrogen, which have a negative impact on the environment.

The research, carried out as the basis of PhD work for researcher Carmen Alcaide and on which also participate researchers Rafael González, Irene Fernández, Emilio Camacho and Juan Antonio Rodríguez, is focused on olive orchards, key in southern Spain’s economy and the crop with the largest area to irrigate in addition to being the crop with the largest water demand in the Guadalquivir basin. Besides, the research is based on using reclaimed water for agricultural use. This reclaimed water already has some macronutrient content and reusing it has become a strategic course of action in the EU within the bioeconomy, enabling us to deal with water shortages, among other things.

Fertigation allows for simultaneously applying the necessary water and fertilizers via irrigation systems. It offers significant advantages compared to other traditional methods, though it requires precise calculations in order to be ideally used and managed, without using more fertilizer than the crop actually needs.

The application, developed with real data on water quality at a pilot plant located in Montilla (in the province of Córdoba), offers water users an irrigation and fertilizing calendar in real time, including the ideal amount of manure recommended. In order to do so, a series of calculations must be done using baseline data such as development and nutritional condition of the tree, past records and even weather forecasts. 

The tool “lets us reduce the use of fertilizers, apply a controlled form of irrigation and properly distribute resources throughout the season”, points out Professor Juan Antonio Rodríguez, so “not only will this provide environmental benefits but also financial ones for water users,” he concludes.

The app offers water users an irrigation

E-commerce, Europe, Seeds

It ensures faster access, facilitating easier processing and rapid shipping timelines within the European Union 

 

 

High Grade Hemp Seed is answering the demand for best-in-class hemp cultivars in Europe with a powerful new distribution partnership, making High Grade’s entire catalog available internationally. This is the first of many steps toward streamlining full international distribution, and opens up the European market in a way that was previously difficult to navigate. It also ensures faster access, facilitating easier processing and rapid shipping timelines within the European Union, as well as providing access to previously difficult to obtain best-in-class hemp genetics. 

 “Amidst the turmoil in import/export regulations and the ever-changing political landscape, having an established neighbour in a growing European market helps pave an easier path for the hemp farmer,” says Mike Leago, COO of High Grade. “It takes strong relationships built on trust and transparency to create a partnership that is effective across the ocean. We have that faith in Swiss Cannabinoid to stand beside us as we help elevate seed genetics worldwide. This expansion will encourage European hemp cultivators to try new varietals, better diversify their crops, and increase profitability. “ 

High Grade Hemp Seed and Swiss Cannabinoid launched its official collaboration earlier this year by paving the way in CBG production in the U.S. with the release of its highly popular new strain, Matterhorn CBG. This international distribution agreement builds upon that partnership, making the entire High Grade portfolio of proven hemp genetics available to European buyers. 

Matthias Ghidossi, founder of Swiss Cannabinoid, has been a key player in the European hemp industry for years. Of the High Grade partnership, Ghidossi shared, “After kick-starting a highly synergistic relationship with the High Grade team on Matterhorn, becoming their European distribution partners was a natural progression. As one of the largest and most respected hemp genetics companies in the world, this fresh infusion of hemp cultivars into the European market will be a great benefit to farmers across the EU.” 

Isaac Cohen, Chief Financial Officer at High Grade Hemp Seed, stated, “Our team has successfully navigated regulatory hurdles, distribution and fulfillment complexity, and customer service considerations to build a robust distribution ecosystem capable of selling and shipping our hemp cultivars to farmers throughout Europe. This has been a huge endeavor, and I’m immensely proud of our team for getting the job done in time for 2020 planting.”

It ensures faster access, facilitating easier processing

Agro chems – Pesticides, E-commerce

The funds will be used to expand the Boston-based startup’s technology platform 

 

 

 

Enko Chem, which harnesses machine learning to help farmers sustainably protect their crops from pests and disease, has raised $45 million. Founder and CEO Jacqueline Heard said the funds will be used to expand the Boston-based startup’s technology platform and ready its pipeline of crop protection solutions for field testing and regulatory trials. Enko also plans to continue pursuing studies and collaborations with industry partners as part of its broader mission.

Enko’s recent round was led by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, with participation from existing investors Anterra Capital and Rabo Food & Agri Innovation Fund. It included new investors Finistere Ventures, Novalis LifeSciences, Germin8 Ventures, and TO Ventures Food. The series B follows a $7.5 million venture round in July 2018 and brings the company’s total raised to $66 million. 

Enko, which was founded in 2017 and incubated by Anterra Capital, a venture fund focused on startups addressing food supply chain challenges, aims to discover safe, economical solutions that promote sustainable staple crop production. The company produces large discovery data sets that are amenable to machine learning and AI models. In tandem with predictive analytics tools, these data sets ostensibly decrease design cycles and bolster success in finding safe, novel, and effective compounds more quickly and cost-effectively than rivals.

Enko uses information about protein targets and pests to inform its product development strategy, sourcing DNA-encoded libraries containing an array of 120 billion compounds. It claims an experimental approach allows it to get an early read on both safety and effectiveness and deliver machine learning- and AI-driven improvements in predictability. Enko says it’s able to cast a broad net and survey hundreds of billions of small molecules while narrowing the scope of the solutions it pursues.

Among other products, Enko is developing insecticides, fungicides, and herbicides for staple crop types in the U.S. and globally. Heard notes that the yields of most fruit and vegetable crops increase 50% to 90% with fungicides and that over 90% of U.S. cropland is now treated with herbicides, an uptick driven by the popularization of no-till farming. No-till farming decreases harmful soil erosion but often isn’t practical without protection against invasive species.

 

 

 

The funds will be used to expand

Agro chems – Pesticides, E-commerce, Finance

The sales of the company rise 14.71% to Rs 875.56 crore in March 2020. 

 

 

 

Net profit of Sharda Cropchem rose 34.10% to Rs 141.65 crore in the quarter ended March 2020 as against Rs 105.63 crore during the previous quarter ended March 2019.

Sales rose 14.71% to Rs 875.56 crore in the quarter ended March 2020 as against Rs 763.30 crore during the previous quarter ended March 2019.

For the full year,net profit declined 6.62% to Rs 164.66 crore in the year ended March 2020 as against Rs 176.34 crore during the previous year ended March 2019.

Sales rose 0.27% to Rs 2003.02 crore in the year ended March 2020 as against Rs 1997.56 crore during the previous year ended March 2019.

Sharda Cropchem Limited is engaged in the marketing and distribution of a wide range of formulations and generic active ingredients globally.  Its core strength lies in identifying generic molecules, preparing dossiers, seeking registrations, marketing and distributing formulations or generic active ingredients in fungicide, herbicide and insecticide segments. The company has also recently entered into the biocide segment and has acquired several registrations from the existing registration holders, primarily, in Europe.

The sales of the company rise 14.71%

E-commerce

Better monsoon boosts sugarcane farming and drop in demand will be overcome 

Sugarcane farming in India has increased substantially in the current year as indicated by satellite images taken in June, 2020. In 2019-20, the total area of farming was about 48.41 lakh hectares which has increased by 8 percent to around 52.28 lakh hectares in 2020-21. 

This was discussed in the meeting of Indian Sugar Mills Association, ISMA on 25th June, 2020 where the images of the cane area, field reports regarding expected yield, sugar recovery, drawl percentage, impact of previous and current year’s rainfall, water availability in reservoirs, expected rainfall during monsoon 2020 and other related aspects were discussed. 

The increase in production of sugarcane and sugar is expected to come from Maharashtra and Karnataka where production had dropped due to drought in 2019-20. Sugar production in Uttar Pradesh, the leading sugarcane producing state in the country is estimated to be around 123.06 lakh tons.  

In Maharashtra, sugar production is estimated to be around 101.34 lakh tons and in Karnataka, around 43.13 lakh tons. Based on all the data, ISMA estimates sugar production of 320.13 lakh tons in 2020-21. Sugar export is estimated to about 60-70 lakh tons in 2020-21. Presently, the ex-mill sugar price has improved after lock down to around Rs.32-33.50 per kilogram.

 

 

Better monsoon boosts sugarcane farming and drop

Agrotech, E-commerce

 The company announces first portfolio investment in soil analytics leader Trace Genomics 

 

 

FMC Corporation announced that it has launched FMC Ventures. The new venture capital arm of FMC Corporation is targeting strategic investments in start-ups and early-stage companies that are developing and applying emerging technologies in the agricultural industry. 

“At FMC, we are investing in the future of agriculture,” said Mark Douglas, president and chief executive officer at FMC. “Through FMC Ventures, we are able to quickly identify, assess and invest in emerging, sustainable technologies that will complement our technology portfolio and deliver strong return on investment.”

FMC Ventures evaluates emerging technologies of relevance to the agricultural industry and will invest in those that create unique competitive advantage for FMC. Agriculture’s most pressing challenges are being addressed through advances in artificial intelligence (AI), genomics, robotics, precision agriculture, biopesticides, synthetic biology and other innovations. As progress in these disciplines converge, they will radically alter how crop inputs are developed, sold and applied. The new venture capital arm of FMC will initially focus investments in these advanced technology areas. 

Investment in Trace Genomics

FMC Ventures announced its first portfolio investment in Trace Genomics, Inc. With operations in Burlingame, CA, and Ames, IA, the start-up combines DNA sequencing with machine learning that not only explains how soil diseases emerge, but also identifies beneficial microorganisms that can be developed into biological products that counter harmful pathogens. Trace Genomics’ technology can identify bacteria, fungi, nematodes and pathogens, as well as their interactions with each other and the plant. An in-depth analysis of microbial diversity and its impact on crops are critical data sets needed by agronomists to recommend the right biological products. 

“Trace Genomics’ superior sequencing and analytical approach to managing soil data will complement the growth objectives for our biological portfolio,” said Amar Singh, managing director of FMC Ventures. “Understanding the important role of soil biology and accurate prediction of disease risk in fields will be increasingly important as the adoption of sustainable, biological crop protection products continues to accelerate around the world. Soil tests on the market today are insufficient to answer all the right questions in detail. Trace Genomics technology changes that.” 

Trace Genomics was recently selected as one of the World Economic Forum’s Technology Pioneers, which recognizes the world’s most promising start-ups and scale-ups that are at the forefront of technological and business model innovation.

 Trace Genomics CEO Dan Vradenburg. said, “Having a global leader like FMC in our corner validates our investments to change how we nurture soil, our most important agricultural asset. To create a future where this planet can feed 10 billion people, we need to collaborate across the food and agriculture system. All stakeholders in agriculture—and certainly solution providers like FMC—want science-backed soil intelligence to unlock the full potential of our living soil. We look forward to collaborating with them as we expand agricultural practices and solutions to help improve farm productivity in a more sustainable manner and restore our living soil.”

 

 

 

 

 The company announces first portfolio investment in

Agro Universities, China, Foodgrains, R&D

The tie-up aims to develop new FHB-resistant wheat varieties 

The CGIAR Research Program on Wheat (WHEAT), led by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT) and the International Centre for Agriculture in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), recently announced a partnership with the Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences (JAAS) in China to open a new screening facility for the deadly and fast-spreading fungal wheat disease Fusarium head blight, or FHB. 

The new facility, based near the JAAS headquarters in Nanjing, aims to capitalize on CIMMYT’s world-class collection of disease-resistant wheat materials and the diversity of the more than 150,000 wheat germplasm in its Wheat Germplasm Bank to identify and characterize genetics of sources of resistance to FHB and, ultimately, develop new FHB-resistant wheat varieties that can be sown in vulnerable areas around the world. 

“The participation of JAAS in the global FHB breeding network will significantly contribute to the development of elite germplasm with good FHB resistance,” said Pawan Singh, head of wheat pathology for CIMMYT. 

“We expect that in 5 to 7 years, promising lines with FHB resistance will be available for deployment by both CIMMYT and China to vulnerable farmers, thanks to this new station.” 

Fusarium head blight is one of the most dangerous wheat diseases. It can cause up to 50% yield loss and produce severe mycotoxin contamination in food and feed, which affects farmers in the form of increased health care and veterinary care costs, and reduced livestock production. 

Even consuming low to moderate amounts of Fusarium mycotoxins may impair intestinal health, immune function and fitness. Deoxynivalenol (DON), a mycotoxin the fungus inducing FHB produces, has been linked to symptoms including nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. In livestock, Fusariummycotoxin consumption exacerbates infections with parasites, bacteria and viruses — such as occidiosis in poultry, salmonellosis in pigs and mice, colibacillosis in pigs, necrotic enteritis in poultry and swine respiratory disease. 

In China, the world’s largest wheat producer, Fusarium head blight is the most important biotic constraint to production. 

The disease is extending quickly beyond its traditionally vulnerable wheat growing areas in East Asia, North America, the southern cone of South America, Europe and South Africa — partly as a result of global warming, and partly due to otherwise beneficial, soil-conserving farming practices such as wheat-maize rotation and reduced tillage. 

“Through CIMMYT’s connections with national agricultural research systems in developing countries, we can create a global impact for JAAS research, reaching the countries that are expected to be affected the expansion of FHB epidemic area,” said Xu Zhang, head of Triticeae crops research group at the Institute of Food Crops of the Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences. 

The new collaborative effort will target Fusarium head blight research but could potentially expand to research on other wheat diseases as well. Wheat blast, for example, is a devastating disease that spread from South America to Bangladesh in 2016. Considering the geographical closeness of Bangladesh and China, a collaboration with CIMMYT, as one of the leading institutes working on wheat blast, could have a strong impact. 

Currently, JAAS and CIMMYT are working on Fusarium head blight under a project funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China called “Elite and Durable Resistance to Wheat Fusarium Head Blight” that aims to deploy resistance genes/QTL in Chinese and CIMMYT germplasm and for use in wheat breeding.

 

 

The tie-up aims to develop new FHB-resistant

E-commerce, North America, R&D

Syngenta plans to build a new R&D Innovation and Customer Experience Centre in Malta

Syngenta announced plans to build a new R&D Innovation and Customer Experience Center in the heart of the U.S. Corn Belt. The 90-acre site will be located in Malta, Ill., DeKalb County, about one hour west of Syngenta’s global and North America Seeds offices in Downers Grove. The site was selected for its location, soil type and accessibility, and will provide facilities for large-scale events and engagement with growers on corn and soybean technology and innovation. 

“This new site will enable us to accelerate our innovation in Seeds R&D while strengthening our focus on delivering new capabilities through investments in breeding and digital technologies,” says Trevor Hohls, global head Seeds Development. “This is a strong statement of our commitment to innovation and providing our scientists with the resources to bring the best products and technologies to solve the key problems that growers face.” 

In addition to showcasing Syngenta’s leading technology and innovation, this new site will spotlight how Syngenta is transforming product development through on-farm collaboration with growers. 

“I’m really excited about this strategic investment and how it will bring us even closer to the centre of the US seeds market, as well as providing access to world-leading agriculture and digital talent in the Midwest,” says Justin Wolfe, Regional Director Seeds North America. “We’re committed to US farmers, and this site will allow to us to collaborate even more with our customers.” 

This investment builds on Syngenta’s continued commitment to Seeds R&D in the US. In addition to Syngenta’s global innovation centre in Research Triangle Park, N.C., the company opened a new $30 million Trait Conversion Accelerator in Nampa, Idaho last August. 

Construction on the Northern Illinois site is expected to begin early next year with the site scheduled to open by the end of 2022.

 

 

Syngenta plans to build a new R&D

Agrotech

 Key points like traceability of food, end to end play in food and agri value chains were discussed in the round-table.

 

 ThinkAg, a food and AgTech platform held its first CEO roundtable on 26th June discussing trends in the Indian Agriculture and Food sector expected in this decade. The roundtable saw participation from leading voices in the sector. D Narain, MD and CEO of Bayer CropScience, Hemant Mallick, Divisional Chief Executive Foods, ITC Ltd, Rajan Anandan, MD Sequoia Capital, Karthik Jayaraman, President & Co-Founder Waycool foods and Products, Krishna Kumar, Founder and CEO Cropin Technology, Dr Harsh Kumar Bhanwala, former Chairman of Nabard , Siraj Chaudhury, MD & CEO, NCML and Damodar Mall, CEO Grocery, Reliance Retail. The panel was moderated by Rama Bijapurkar, an independent management consultant. 

While the panel concluded on a note that technology and agriculture are destined to be intertwined, established companies, AgTech enterprises and financial institutions may form alliances and create closed loop systems which will be beneficial for the farmer, the anchor businessman and the entire value chain thus driving changes in an age old sector. Consumers will play a critical role as their demands change not only in what they want to eat but also on how food gets to them and where it comes from. The full value chain is expected to undergo dramatic digitization from seed to farm to fork. The key points discussed were:

 Accelerated digitization of consumer behaviour is being seen. This will increase in its velocity further. Direct to Consumer brands will grow. Value chain will grow on the basis of contact less transactions, digitization and massive adoption of change. FMCGs have not so far looked at carrying out their operations with touchless and paperless transactions. This will now be the focus for them in all their transactions. 

  • Modern technology including biotechnology will be used to enhance farmers’ yields and make them comparable to the global yields. This will make him more competitive. His costs have to be reduced through technological interventions with science & technology, new products, services, agronomic practices, mechanization, digitization, etc 
  • Traceability of food and trust in brands will gain more importance. But questions of how those costs will be absorbed remain to be seen. 
  • Digital will become a necessary condition for enabling the partnerships. Digital start-ups will play a huge role in combination with established companies in bridging the gaps and making it a smooth flow in the value chain. 
  • Pure hardware solutions like warehouses will be combined with software solutions like digital technologies, new business models, etc to maximize the value. 
  • Usage of data is very important and this will only pick up speed now. Data can help in: Increasing Traceability of production, Improved Predictability of farming operations, increased risk management of farmer and reducing the costs of farmers. A trillion data points generated annually is expected to grow.
  • Active internet users, now around 500m is expected to grow to 1B by 2025-27. Most of this growth will come from rural areas and farmers. Acceleration of digitization of farmers’ lives will take place and investments will flow more into AgTech enterprises. 
  • End to end play in food and agri value chains through partnership is likely to be more frequent than seen before. The total crop system approach has to be aimed at farmer profitability and sustainability (of environment and incomes). All eco system partners have to work together. 
  • Role of government in output markets will come down progressively because of the new reforms. Competition from private players will bring out greater efficiencies in APMCs, FCI, CCI and other government organizations that procure agricultural produce. Farmers’ price discovery will improve. The reforms will help in bringing greater economic activity closer to the farmer. Warehouses will become small scale private mandis and activity centres instead of just being storage spaces. Linking farmers to markets will pick up speed. FPOs will fructify more. Exotic and labour intensive crops will suffer in the short run. Private sector and Agri Tech will join hands and will increase their importance in the output markets considerably. 
  • The recently announced reforms are good for banks. Rural infrastructure is also a part of the priority sector lending. The new Infrastructure fund of Rs. 1 lakh cr will be a big boon for priority sector lending. Contract farming and closed loop system will suit the banks very well to extend lending. Warehouses, Packhouses, Cold storages, etc will all get a boost under priority sector lending. Contract farming will help in funding small farmers. Opportunities to increase agri exports will be enormous. Market segmentation and demand driven production of crops will give better returns to the farmers. 

“We are very happy to have hosted this CEO Round Table. It brought together some of the best minds in the sector and provided some unbelievable insights into the likely scenario in this decade. This is invaluable for innovators and entrepreneurs who are venturing out into the Agri Tech space” said Ram Kaundinya, one of the Co-Founders of ThinkAg.

 

 

 Key points like traceability of food, end

Pulses

5000 disaster relief kits handed over to the under-privileged citizens. 

 

 

 India Pulses and Grains Association (IPGA), the nodal body for India’s pulses trade and industry handed over 5000 disaster relief kits toMinister Javed Ahmed Khan, MIC Disaster Management and Civil Defence, West Bengal to be distributed to the under-privileged citizens affected by the Cyclone Amphan in Kolkata. Each relief kit contains 5 kgs Rice, 1 kg Masoor Dal, 1 kg Sugar, 1 kg Salt and 1 litre Edible Oil. 

Anurag Tulshan – IPGA Convenor, East Zone speaking about the initiative said, “Cyclone Amphan has created a havoc in Kolkata and the after effects have been tremendous. People are still suffering and unable to resume normal life. Daily livelihood has been impacted and getting food for survival is a challenge. IPGA decided to step up its contribution by providing 5000 disaster relief kits to the under privileged citizens of Kolkata. IPGA will always support the state government in every possible situation especially natural calamities.” 

While commenting on IPGA’s overall contribution to the nation Bimal Kothari, Vice Chairman – IPGA said, “This initiative is third in the series of overall contribution of the pulses trade to the nation amounting to Rs. 5 crores. The first contribution was pledging Rs. 21 Lakh to PM-CARES Fund and the second contribution was of providing 5000 ration bags to Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, Mumbai for the migrant workers and 1000 ration bags to Navi Mumbai Police Department to honour the tireless efforts taken by police personnel in the fight against COVID 19.

  Kothari also added that as the nodal body of the pulses trade, we are proud to be a part of all the relief work done so far and will always support all the state and central government efforts during such unprecedented times. We are the FIRST ASSOCIATION to come forward and contribute to the best of our capacity. We hope that our effort encourages other similar Associations to come forward and contribute. This is the time that we need to come forward to take care of our fellow Indians and support them.

IPGA, apart from the contribution of Rs. 21 lakhs to PM-CARES Fund which is in addition to the various amounts contributed by their members. The overall contribution from the Pulses Trade to PM-CARES Fund is close to Rs. 5 crores. This is over and above the contribution made by IPGA Members in the form of food grains, sanitizers, masks, gloves and similar essential commodities and products.

5000 disaster relief kits handed over to

R&D

 The patent provides broad protection for the encapsulation of terpenes in hollow cell wall particles. 

 

 

Biopesticides and encapsulation Technology Company Eden Research has been granted two patents for its technology in the United States, announced the company. The AIM-traded firm said patents for its ‘Sustaine’ encapsulation technology and compositions for insecticide products had both been granted by the US Patent Office.  It said Sustaine microcapsules are naturally sourced, plastic-free, biodegradable micro-spheres derived from yeast extract.

 “Importantly, the Sustaine microencapsulation technology enables the use of naturally occurring terpenes for application in commercial crop protection,” the board explained in its statement.

Eden Research said the initial patent provided broad compositional protection for the encapsulation of terpenes in hollow cell wall particles.

The second patent provided protection for the use of compositions in a method of killing mites, or treating and preventing a mite infestation, which was a designed use for Eden’s new insecticide products. Eden outlined its intention to use a proportion of the proceeds from its fundraising in March to pursue the registration and commercialisation of its first insecticide products.

The initial investment and efficacy trials would target some of the highest value insecticide markets in the US, such as mites, in multiple high value crops including citrus, tree fruit and grapes. It said the total estimated market size for those combined markets in the US was €330m.

 

The board said there was a “strong need” for an effective alternative to conventional insecticides in the US, due to consumer and regulatory pressures. “The insecticide products will be additions to the company’s current suite of products,” the board said.

 

“Eden’s biopesticide product portfolio is based upon the powerful combination of plant-derived active ingredients and the Sustaine microencapsulation system.

“Eden’s plant protection products offer ease of use and efficacy on par with conventional pesticides whilst being exempt from maximum residue levels in Europe and having low or no pre-harvest intervals, giving growers maximum control and flexibility.”

 

 The patent provides broad protection for the

Acts & Schemes – Centre, Agro chems – Pesticides, World

India conducts successful trials of  vehicle mounted ULV sprayer for locust control. 

 

 

 Under the Make in India initiative, the Department of Agriculture, Cooperation & Farmers’ Welfare (DAC&FW) is indigenously developing a vehicle mounted Ultra Low Volume, ULV sprayer for locust control. 

The Mechanization and Technology Division of DAC&FW got a prototype of the sprayer developed through an Indian manufacturer and its trials have been successfully conducted in Ajmer and Bikaner districts of Rajasthan. 

This significant achievement will end the dependence of importing equipment for locust control. Deficiencies of vehicle mounted sprayers with height and not reaching inaccessible areas prompted the exploration of aerial spraying methods.

 Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare  Narendra Singh Tomar also initiated the use of drones for Locust control. After conditional exemption was given by Ministry of Civil Aviation, MoCA to the use of drones with payload of pesticides and initial trials in Jaipur, Rajasthan and Shivpuri, Madhya Pradesh, five drone service providers have been engaged to work at Barmer, Jaisalmer, Bikaner, Nagore and Phalodi (Jodhpur) districts of Rajasthan with 12 drones deployed till date. 

India has been lauded by the Food and Agriculture Organization, FAO of the United Nations as the first country in the world to use drones to combat desert locusts.

India conducts successful trials of  vehicle mounted

E-commerce, Europe

The company will make a payment of $8.8 billion to $9.6 billion to resolve the current Roundup litigation 

Bayer announced a series of agreements that will substantially resolve major outstanding Monsanto litigation, including U.S. Roundup product liability litigation, dicamba drift litigation and PCB water litigation. The main feature is the U.S. Roundup resolution that will bring closure to approximately 75 per cent of the current Roundup litigation involving approximately 125,000 filed and unfiled claims overall. The resolved claims include all plaintiff law firms leading the Roundup federal multi-district litigation (MDL) or the California bellwether cases, and those representing approximately 95 per cent of the cases currently set for trial, and establish key values and parameters to guide the resolution of the remainder of the claims as negotiations advance. The resolution also puts in place a mechanism to resolve potential future claims efficiently. The company will make a payment of $8.8 billion to $9.6 billion to resolve the current Roundup litigation, including an allowance expected to cover unresolved claims, and $1.25 billion to support a separate class agreement to address potential future litigation. The Roundup class agreement will be subject to approval by Judge Vince Chhabria of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The resolutions were approved unanimously by Bayer’s Board of Management and Supervisory Board with input from its Special Litigation Committee. The agreements contain no admission of liability or wrongdoing.

 “First and foremost, the Roundup settlement is the right action at the right time for Bayer to bring a long period of uncertainty to an end,” says Werner Baumann, Chief Executive Officer of Bayer. “It resolves most current claims and puts in place a clear mechanism to manage risks of potential future litigation. It is financially reasonable when viewed against the significant financial risks of continued, multi-year litigation and the related impacts to our reputation and to our business. The decision to resolve the Roundup litigation enables us to focus fully on the critical supply of healthcare and food. It will also return the conversation about the safety and utility of glyphosate-based herbicides to the scientific and regulatory arena and to the full body of science.” 

“The Roundup agreements are designed as a constructive and reasonable resolution to a unique litigation,” says Kenneth R. Feinberg, court-appointed mediator for the settlement talks. “The separate, independent settlements of the current claims are unique and a tribute to Bayer. The significant progress made to date – which exceeds the initial participation rates of other claims resolution proceedings – provides a robust framework that will enable the parties to bring closure to the current Roundup™ litigation in due course.”

 

 

The company will make a payment of